I haven’t been “rambling” as much as I would like to the past few weeks, but things have been pretty busy here in Portland. Last week my sister came out for a visit which was a lot of fun. I took two days off from work, so it was like a mini-vacation for me as well. Natalie tore a ligament in her ankle this fall (anterior-talofib for all my chiropractic readers), so we were limited in the walking department. But have no fear, we kept ourselves entertained exploring some of Portland’s wonderful restaurants. I can honestly say I don’t remember the last time I have eaten this much! Here are some of the highlight’s from Nat’s visit.
Laughing Planet Cafe
The first stop on our culinary journey was our neighborhood Laughing Planet Cafe. We love this place for their healthy burrito and salad options, frequent local ingredients and their dinosaurs. Yes, there are many plastic dinosaurs that can serve as your centerpiece, or entertainment and yes, it is important that Alex have one when he visits. It was pretty busy when we visited and he was nice enough to hand his over to a little girl who desperately wanted one.
Glowing Greens
Alex has been looking forward to playing putt-putt at Glowing Greens. It opened this past fall, but every time we tried to play before our plan was foiled. Luckily it all worked out and we had a great time. If you are looking for a great rainy day activity in Portland, this is it. We enjoyed 18 holes of black lights, pirates and undersea creatures. The best part was that we were able to make a reservation so we didn’t have to wait in line!
Homemade Treats
I also introduced Nat to some of my specialties including: tortilla pizzas, gluten-free pancakes and of course, dairy-free cake batter milkshakes.
Crazy Weather
We had the weirdest weather last week. Sunshine and 60’s, snow showers and our usual rain. Overall, couldn’t have asked for better weather for a visitor in March!
Breakfast in Bridgetown
Without a doubt, some of Portland’s best food is served for breakfast. I’ve been wanting to try Broder for a while now and the review in this month’s Portland Monthly sealed the deal. The atmosphere was warm and cozy and the pytt I panna (Swedish hash) was AMAZING. We also enjoyed Jam on Hawthrone which was classic and greasy breakfast food. Not quite as memorable as our meal at Broder, but good nonetheless.
Frozen Treats
When Natalie found out she was coming to Portland the first thing she asked is if we could go to Salt & Straw. Of course the answer was yes. Like I needed an excuse to enjoy my favorite ice cream. I recently tweeted my recommendation to the Young House Love bloggers when they were in town. After seeing how much they enjoyed it I am pretty sure a stop here is as important as a trip to Powell’s when visiting Portland. The picture below is of Nat’s Stumptown coffee and cocoa nibbs and chocolate with gooey brownies. I had my usual: candied pear with blue cheese and sea salt cream with carmel ribbon. On one of our sunny days we also enjoyed frozen yogurt at Nectar which is ones of my faces in town as well.
Mexican and the best salads in Portland
My parents graciously treated the three of us to a belated birthday dinner which we celebrated at Nuestra Cocina. Here we enjoyed freshly made tortillas, crisp salads, stuffed tacos and prawns with plantains and beans. Not too shabby. Everything was super fresh and it was a nice finish to my birthday week. Nat and I also had lunch at my new favorite spot in town The Observatory Restaurant. I have officially declared their apple and beet salad the best salad in Portland. Their sweet potato fries are outstanding as well.
Well, I told you we did a lot of eating. Everything we at was fresh, affordable and delicious. The food scene is just one of the many reasons I love this city. I would highly recommend any of the places featured above. Hope you enjoyed this rather lengthy post of our culinary adventures!
Ramblings by Rach 